Oyster or like opening apparatus



NW. 10, 1931. H. HENRY ET AL 1,831,448 I OYSTER 0R LIKE OPENING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 25, 1930 3413.2. HM/bear Hem $044124 .Daileaa (m Mueulf'og 35% THE-R Clttozueaag 40 as hereinafter Patented Nov. 10, 1931 UNITED STATES HUBERT HENRY AND JAMES BAILEY DAY, or RADFORD/ENGLAND OYSTER or. LIKE OPENING APPARATUS" Application filed February 25, 1930, Serial No.

This invention relates to an apparatus for the opening of oysters or the like.

To open oysters rapidly and without damage thereto is a matter requiring considerable skill and the number of persons skilled in the art is not great. As a result much time and incidentally many oysters is and are wasted by unskilled treatment.

Our object is to arrange and construct n an oyster or like opening apparatus which is easy to manipulate and which will not damage the oyster.

Broadly the apparatus will comprise a holder for the oyster shell which holder will be flexibly carried or hinged in connection with the apparatus, and a knife which may be moved towards the shell holder, or the knife may be a fixture and the shell holder be drawn towards the knife.

Adjusta-bility will be provided with respect to such parts as require it.

The advantages of the invention as well as the operation will be readily comprehended from the following detailed description of the drawings wherein,

Fig. 1 represents a general view of a machine constructed according to our invention.

Fig. 2 represents an underside View of a knife.

Fig. 3 represents a side view of a knife and Fig. 4 represents a'transverse section of the oyster carrier taken on line aZ) of Fig. 1.

In the drawings we have shown a form of machine adapted to be clamped to a table or the like, but it will be obvious the machine may be mounted, supported and operated in other ways, for example we may find it desirable to employ a fixed knife and draw the shell towards the knife and not the opposite. described. A represents a bracket of suitable form adapted to be clamped to a table or like by clamp members A and A The bracket A is provided with a bearin B for a threaded shafts, and a handle If is provided for turning such shaft,

and in some forms the outer end of the shaft may be supported on a bearing carried by the outer part A of the bracket A which is of a somewhat semi-circular open cross section and carries or has formed on its arms, slides 431,076, and in G-reat'BritainMaroh 18, 1929.

A within which aknife or like K operates.

The knife K carries aboss K from which it is easily removable, which boss engages the shaft Sand 011 turnin ofsuch shaft, a pin or likes in the boss Ti engages thespiral groove S *of. the shaft and so causes the knife to travel in its slides This knifehas a somewhat rounded point K and its edge K is formed with a slightly downward trend from the point, and we prefer to add guides G to the underside of the knife as in Figs. 2 I and. 3 which have a tendency to prevent the underface of the knife from, as it were, gathering the oyster and so tending to breaksameand at the same timeserve to press the lower shell downwardssf V 0 The oysteror like is mounted in a holder somewhat U-shaped in formationwith its outer portion H" slightly dished. In some forms a gap may be left in the said dished edge for the knife point to pass'into. The holder is pivotally attachedto arms C preferably slightlycranked as at'C which are pivoted as at C to the part A of'the bracket and the holder is providedwith a cross bar H suitably curved as in Fig. l. f

' l/Vhen itis desired to set the holder for varying sized oysters or the like, thearms may have several holes such as H? therein and the cross bar H acts as the pivot and may be secured in the desired holes by means I of a nut or likeH- as in Fig. 4,1,whi'ch shows a' section through the pivot portion on line a 'b offFig, 1.

An'eXtra foot A may be added to the stability if required.

e may add to the machine-suitable wiping, devices for the edges of the knife as it is operated. V f

The machine as a whole is constructed in such'wise'and from .suchnmaterial that it may readily cleaned and sterilized.

' The reason for mounting the shell holder or carrier on-fiexible-or double hinged con- 5 nections is that there is a great variety in the thickness of shells and disposition of the hinge, and to cause the knife to engage the ay be necessary to hinge of the shells it m a certain amount of manipu- 100 shown dotted inFi g. 1 bracket A to give extra give the holder lation such as by raising same somewhat. Once the knife has entered the hinge of the shell no further manipulation of the carrier is needed and the carrier may assume a position in alignment with the knife or substantially so but slightly below its plane.

The oyster or the like, having been placed in its holder, with the hinge part to the knife, and the knife moved to engage the hinge portion, the knife is moved forward in its slide and the holder being relatively stationary,

the top shell is detached and the upper muscle, connected to the shell, severed and the knife may pass to the limit of its travel and so remove the top shell, leaving the lower shell containing the oyster in the holder.

The apparatus is sure in its action and with a little practice may be operated rapidly and no damage ensue to the oyster.

Ne have shown and described what we believe to be the simplest and best form of our invention, but certain modifications may be made in the construction without, however, departlng from the spirit of our invention,

What we claim is, 1. A device of the .character described,

comprising in combination, a supporting member, a knife mounted for reclprocatory movement on said member, a pair of arms pivotally connected to the support respectively at opposite sides of said knife, and an oyster supporting member pivoted to said arms and adapted to occupy an angular position diflerent from that of the arms with relation to the path of the knife. 7

2. 'A device of the character described, comprising in combination, a supporting member, a knife mounted for reciprocatory movement on said member, a pair of arms pivotally connected to the support respectively at opposite sides of said knife, and an oyster supporting member adjustably pivoted to said arms and adapted to occupy different angular positions with relation to the path of the knife and to said arms.

3. A device of the character described, comprising in combination, a supporting member, a knife mounted for reciprocatory movement on said member, a pair of arms pivotally connected to the support respectively at opposite sides of said knife, and a curved member pivotally connected at its opposite ends to the respective arms whereby the curved member and arms are adapted to occupy different angular positions with respect to the path of travel of the knife.

. In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification.

HUBERT HENRY.

JAMES DAILEY DAY; 

